Spanish Court Halts Investigation into Assassination of Defected Russian Pilot Amid Unidentified Suspects

A Spanish court announced on Wednesday that it has placed an indefinite pause on the investigation into the murder of a Russian military pilot who defected to Ukraine.

The judicial authority in Spain indicated that the inquiry was suspended due to the lack of identified suspects, with law enforcement unable to pinpoint either the individuals responsible for the crime or those who may have orchestrated it.

Maxim Kuzminov, 28, piloted an Mi-8 helicopter from the Kursk region of Russia to Ukraine on August 9, 2023, after losing faith in his country’s aggressive invasion of its neighbor.

Subsequently, he relocated from Ukraine to Spain, where he purchased an apartment in the coastal town of Villajoyosa, situated near Alicante.

Kuzminov was fatally shot on February 13, 2024, in a parking garage of a residential building.

A source involved in the Spanish investigation, referenced by 60 Minutes, suggested that the murder might have connections to a former KGB agent and a family member who serves as a colonel in the Russian police.

High-ranking officials within the Spanish police informed The New York Times that the manner of the attack resembled previous assassination operations linked to Russia, such as the 2019 assassination of Zelimkhan Khangoshvili in Berlin by FSB officer Vadim Krasikov and the 2018 poisoning of former Russian agent Sergei Skripal by Russian military intelligence operatives in Salisbury.

The Kremlin has consistently dismissed allegations regarding the assassination or attempted assassination of its critics or defectors, both within Russia and abroad.